GHNS Illinois Budget (6/25/08)

Wednesday

Jun 25, 2008 at 12:01 AMJun 25, 2008 at 7:04 PM

GHNS Illinois Budget (6/25/08)

Here are the top Illinois stories coming today from GateHouse News Service. Stories are available at www.gatehousenewsservice.com. Please check www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/news in the evening for changes to story lineup, including breaking news.

If your paper has a story, digest item, opinion piece or standalone photo to share, please e-mail it to Illinois@gatehousemedia.com.

PEORIA – Teens are discovering that finding employment is harder than in previous summers as they compete with job-seeking adults who have been fired or laid off. By Joe Crawford of the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1470892184

STATE BRIEFS: News from around the state. POSTED.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x2010596689

KILLER BEETLES: Wonder what that bright purple box hanging next to a patch of trees is on the side of the road? It's a trap to catch the highly destructive beetle known as the emerald ash borer, a metallic-green bug that feeds on ash trees, eventually killing them. Experts worry it could wipe out the country's ash trees. The beetle has been spotted in parts of Chicago and LaSalle County. By Erin Wood of the Peoria Journal Star. Will be posted this evening.

BODY FOUND: A man's body was pulled this morning from the Illinois River by the members of the Peoria Fire Department's dive team. Early reports are that a Pekin man was seen walking into the river near the McNaughton Bridge about 12:45 a.m. Crews began searching for the man about an hour later but had to quit due to the storms. By Joe Crawford of the Peoria Journal Star. Will be posted this evening.

AFSCME requests mediator, current contract extended

SPRINGFIELD – Negotiations between the state and its largest employee union ended Wednesday with the union requesting that a mediator be brought into the talks. By Doug Finke of the State Capitol bureau. Will be updated.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x379975724

Closure looms for public TV station

SPRINGFIELD – Springfield’s public television station is in a financial crisis so serious that the station’s chief executive officer is warning it could go off the air. By Bruce Rushton of the State Journal-Register.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1713649012

Shooter walks into jail, turns himself in

SPRINGFIELD – A man who walked into the Sangamon County Jail on Monday night, gun in hand, to surrender after allegedly shooting another man, already was on parole for a gun crime. But the same man also was honored by the Illinois Department of Public Health in 1997 for rescuing and resuscitating a drowning boy. By Sarah Antonacci of the State Journal-Register.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x379975717

Residents worried about having veterans for neighbors

ROCKFORD – Carpenter’s Place closed Friday on a three-bedroom ranch home in Rockford. It moved in furniture over the weekend, and on Tuesday, a group of employees and volunteers stood in a circle in the living room, held hands and prayed for the people who will live in the house and the neighbors. The only thing missing now is the tenants, and that’s what has neighbors worried. By Chris Green of the Rockford Register Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x833719725

Unbalanced budget could lead to cuts, special sessions

SPRINGFIELD – The stage has been set for another long, hot summer in Springfield. Gov. Rod Blagojevich announced Tuesday that he’ll make $1.5 billion in painful cuts from the $59 billion state budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 unless the legislature approves ways to raise more money. By Bernard Schoenburg of the State Journal-Register.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x2010595903

ILLINOIS BUSINESS
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois_business

Harmonica maker hits right notes, walks away with first prize

ROCKFORD – Brad Harrison entered the Stateline FastPitch Competition on a whim six days ago with the idea to mass-produce custom harmonicas, which he’s been making for about 12 years. So you can imagine the 38-year-old’s surprise when he was handed an oversized check for $5,000 and named the second-year competition’s winner. By Melissa Westphal of the Rockford Register Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x19924453

Contractor hired to build federal courthouse named in 3 lawsuits

ROCKFORD – The Alabama company hired to be the primary contractor on Rockford’s $100 million federal courthouse has three federal lawsuits pending from subcontractors who say they weren’t paid on other projects. By Sean F. Driscoll of the Rockford Register Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x390618332

MACHESNEY PARK – Joshua and Kalie Kuhl are changing at least 30 diapers a day, mixing and administering 24 bottles, and getting their sleep in one-and-a-half to two-hour chunks. They’re perfectly happy with that. By Deborah Austin of the Rockford Register Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x222995876

‘John Brown’s Body’ comes alive at Theatre in the Park

SPRINGFIELD – At Theatre in the Park, “John Brown’s Body” won’t really sound like an epic poem, but it is. It’s a musical, but not always in a burst-into-song sense. It’s a drama with two love stories. It’s a tragedy with a Greek chorus. It’s a readers’-theater presentation using three actors as storytellers. By Nick Rogers of the State Journal-Register.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x379975641

BRITT: Toon on how state government works – or doesn’t work. POSTED.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x415946801

Jerry Moore: Suspicion of legislators erodes trust in government

How infuriating is it to see lawmakers accused of running afoul of the law State Rep. Bob Biggins, R-41st District, of Elmhurst is the latest elected official caught in a legal quandary. He was charged May 28 with driving under the influence, improper lane use and not having proof of insurance.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/opinions/x2113785366

Editorial: Governor makes his move; now it’s Madigan’s turn

Gov. Rod Blagojevich has made the latest move in the political game of chess that features the Illinois budget as a prize. Now we’ll see how Speaker of the House Mike Madigan counters. An editorial from the Rockford Register Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1713648888

Editorial: DNR needs stable revenue

As Wildlife Prairie State Park celebrates its 30th year, Illinois lawmakers want to give the nature sanctuary near Peoria an anniversary present: $828,000 for park operations out of the state's general revenue fund. An editorial from the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x822808518

Editorial: Officer violated victims and the public trust

Last week, former Bloomington police sergeant Jeff Pelo was convicted of raping four women and stalking a fifth. The verdict brought resolution to a trial two years in the making, as jurors found the 43-year-old guilty on 35 criminal counts, including aggravated sexual assault. An editorial from the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x822808573

MIKE NADEL: Nadel will be writing on the Bulls draft Thursday night and from all three games of this weekend’s White Sox-Cubs series.

Feisty fowl a nuisance on the golf course

PEORIA – Margaret Gibson likes to play golf, and the Mt. Hawley Country Club member enjoys looking at the wildlife on her golf course when she does play. Recently, however, Gibson and the rest of the members at Mt. Hawley have one fewer species to admire. By Greg Stewart of the Peoria Journal Star.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/sports/x2010596503

Kirk Wessler: Suspicious minds aside, relationships do matter

Cubs GM Jim Hendry played a part in the hiring of Bradley’s new baseball coach.
http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/sports/x1470891574

Sister Publications

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
Times Reporter ~ 629 Wabash Ave. NW New Philadelphia, OH 44663 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service